Technology Has Been My New Best Friend!

Over the past five years or so, I have been struggling with keeping up to date with all the current trends/updates out there when it comes to technology! However, within past year or two, I have recently started to finally step out of my comfort zone, take the plunge, and just TRY! I can honestly say that certain things have improved, both professionally and personally!With teaching, I have taken some recent classes that have been all geared towards using technology! Some things I have been doing more in my English Language Arts classroom that involve using technology include using more websites to explore with our learning (www.newsela.com is one of my favorites for informational text!). I have been using this website for a couple of years now, but recently started to want to use it more. Did you know this website has quizzes (common core based) that students can take online and sends you the results? Another "plunge" I took was creating a Figurative Language WebQuest for my students. This is something they are currently working on & I feel they are enjoying it! And coming here very soon, my students will be doing their Literature Circles, where I have now revamped it over the past year and they are half in person/half virtual. Taking the Literature Circles online has been a huge success! The platform I decided to use for that is Edmodo!Now, when it comes to my personal life at home with my husband and our three daughters, I have also tried to "technify" our lives a little bit more. One way is a new app that we have started using with our fourteen year old. The app is called "Life360." This app I found out about through a coworker and let me tell you, it's going to be so beneficial in the next upcoming years as she goes through her high school years! This app basically is a GPS that keeps you up to date with where your child is. Another way I have tried to "technify" our life here at home was through shared calendars online. We attempted this a year ago, but didn't have success with it! I am an old school type of lady and still like my calendar that we hang on the refrigerator and actually write on that! However, there's times when I'm somewhere and need to check what we have going on and don't have my calendar with me. (I usually will then text my hubby or daughter and have them take a picture of our fridge calendar and send to me...haha!) Also, note that I am really bad with keeping things in my phone, and I don't want to also then keep track using a smaller sized calendar in my purse. Way too much!  I still want to give it a try with using online shared calendars with my family and am looking for any tips that people might have with this! So please share!!! :)

Staying Organized is the Goal, But Reality Is...

Have you ever read up on so many articles as you scroll across your social media, or have you ever pinned from Pinterest all these great ideas on ways to stay organized, or have you ever had friends who give you all these great "tips" or heck, even bags/bins, to organize your life? Personally, I have done all of these. The reality, though, is that we are all different and for some of us, the organization just doesn't happen! Being a mom of three girls, all who are very active, and teaching middle schoolers, sometimes there just simply isn't the time to be as neat and tidy as we would like! And you know what, I feel THAT'S OKAY!!! One of those articles I recently stumbled across the other day was titled, "A Lived Life is a Messy Life!" I loved this! How true this is, especially for those of us with multiple kids and with a profession that takes a toll on us both mentally and physically! Feel free to read this article for yourself:

http://community.today.com/parentingteam/post/a-lived-life-is-a-messy-life?fbclid=IwAR395lfq-XbMHPqgT_SrWrgw5dsBLRrMRot1Gw6aKX-Dzd0GYfRQ-yaJrKU

Here's my thoughts on my post for today...whether it be in your classroom or in your own home, organization can definitely help make our days better! But what truly matters...to live the life you were given and make the most out of it the best you can, loving & caring for those people who are the most important after all!

Welcome!

Hello! My name is Kelly & welcome to my blog, “Mommin’ & Teachin.” The reason for creating this blog is because I feel that there are so many moms out there who are trying to juggle and balance it all! As a mother of three daughters (14, 6, & 2) and having gone through twelve years of teaching middle school English Language Arts (on top of getting my Masters Degree a couple of years ago), I feel that communicating with others about my experiences (both the ups and the downs) could possibly be a good way to reach out to others who are maybe going through the same things. There's so much pressure on us in today's age, both professionally and personally! In addition, young moms and young teachers could especially benefit from this as they try to balance and juggle the many different hats we wear as both moms and teachers! Hopefully through my blog I can provide some realistic insight, some tips, some humor, or just pure understanding of what it's like to have others who are in the same shoes! Make it a great day!